Method of producing bent sippers



July 14, 1942.

c. HAMILTON METHOD OF PRODUCING BENT SIPPERS Filed Jan 2]., 1939 vINVENTOR FRANCIS C HAMILTON BY WWW- AT TORN EY Patented July 14, 1942 fMETHOD OF PRODUCING EENT 'SIPPERS Francis C. Hamilton, Evanston, 111.,assignor of one-half to L. Ray Schuessler, St.ILouis, Mo.

Application January 21, 1939, Serial No. 252,057

6 Claims.

This invention relates generally to sippers of the type employed as anaid in drinking liquids from receptacles, and more specifically to asipper of this type which is provided with a bend in its length so as tomake more convenient the use of such sippers, the predominant object ofthe invention being a bent sipper that is inexpensive and is capable ofvery convenient use.

As is quite generally known to the average person, the familiar sippers,or straws as they are ordinarily called, are straight, and because ofthis fact such straight sippers are not entirely convenient to use. Thisis so because the straight sipper makes it necessary that a user of sucha sipper lean forwardly so as to bring his mouth to, or close to, aposition immediately above the receptacle with which the sipper is beingused when the receptacle is supported on a table or counter. In the caseof a grown person the forward leaning posture described may be assumedwith some inconvenience and perhaps with a certain sacrifice of dignity,but in the case of a child, or an unusually short person, theinconvenience is substantial, usually requiring that the receptacle beheld in the hands below the elevation of the table or counter, or thatthe child kneel on his chair or stool to bring his mouth to the properelevation.

In the use of the improved bent sippers disclosed herein the usersthereof, whether children or grown persons, may assume substantiallynatural, upright postures at tables or counters and thereby eliminatethe inconveniences mentioned above.

Another inconvenience in connection with the ordinary straight sipperhas to do with the use thereof by a person in a reclining position, asick person, for instance, in which situation the ordinary straightsipper is practically useless. I am aware that hospital patients aresupplied with glass drinking tubes which are provided with a bend in thelengths thereof, but the repeated use of such tubes is unsanitary.Additionally the glass drinking tubes referred to are relativelyexpensive when compared with the sipper disclosed herein, and said glassdrinking tubes are subject to breakage. By providing a sick person witha supply of the bent sippers disclosed herein the matter of sanitationin connection with the sippers is completely taken care of because ofthe fact that each sipper is used only once and then disposed of. Alsothe question of breakage of the glass drinking tubes heretofore used isentirely eliminated by the use of the improved bent sipper, and the costof supplying the sippers will be very slight due to the fact that thebent sippers of the present invention will cost very little more thanthe familiar ordinary straight straws.

1 is an elevation of the improved bent sipper, a portion thereof beingshown in section.

Fig. 2 is a perspective of an apparatus for producing the improved bentsipper,

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

In the drawing, wherein is shown for the purpose of illustration,merely, one embodiment of the improved sipper, and one method ofproducing same, A designates the improved sipper generally. The sipper Ais preferably formed of a thermo-plastic material resembling Celluloid,which material is reduced to tissue thinness, said sipper preferably,though not necessarily, being formed by winding a narrow strip of thematerial spirally to produce a sipper of the required length. At asuitable point in the length of the sipper, for instance, approximatelyone-fourth of the length of the sipper measured from one end thereof, abend B is placed in the sipper, and this bend will provide the sipperwith a longer sipper portion A which is adapted to be introduced into areceptacle from which liquid is to be drawn with the aid of the sipper,and a shorter sipper portion A which is extended at an angle withrespect to the sipper portion A and is the sipper portion to which ausers mouth is applied when the sipper is in use.

It is obvious that in the use of a bent sipper made as illustrated inFig. 1 the sipper portion A may be introduced into a drinking glass,bottle, or other receptacle, and that when the sipper is so disposed thesipper portion A will extend at an angle with respect to the sipperportion A toward the position of the mouth of a person seated in areasonably upright position. Thus the inconveniences recited above asbeing attached to the use of the ordinary straight sipper are entirelyeliminated, and a sipper is provided which is capable of performing itsintended function in a highly eflicient manner.

One method of producing the improved bent sippers is illustrated inFigs. 2 and 3 wherein is illustrated an apparatus that includes anendless belt I mounted for traveling movement, in the directionindicated by the arrow, over opposed pulleys 2. The pulleys 2 aresupported on shafts 3 and rotary movement is imparted to one or both ofsaid shafts by suitable means (not shown). Suitably supported above thetraveling belt I is a hopper 4 which is adapted to receive a supply ofstraight sippers, said hopper being provided with an opening at itsbottom of such shape and dimensions that one sipper at a time may passthrough the opening and be discharged on the top flight of the belt I tomove therewith in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2. Theapparatus illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 includes a second belt 5 which isdisposed at an angle with respect to the belt I; that is to say theplane of the top surface of the upper flight of the belt 5 is disposedat an angle of approximately forty-flve degrees with respect to theplane of the top surface of the upper flight of the belt I. The belt 5is supported for traveling movement over pulleys 6 and these pulleys aremounted on shafts I, one or both of said shafts I being subjected torotary movement by suitable means (not shown). The belt 5 travels in thesame direction as does the belt I and said belts I and 5 travel at thesame rate of speed.

Supported between the belts I and 5 as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 is aburner tip 8 to which a combustible medium is conducted from a source ofsupply by a pipe 9. The burner tip 8 has associated with it a heatabsorbing hood II] which is suitably supported in its proper position,said hood being in the form of an elongated metallic member ofapproximately inverted U-shaped formation in cross section. The hood Illis so disposed that a flame burning at the burner tip 8 is directedagainst the lower face of the curved upper portion of the hood at apoint close to the end of the hood which is remote from the hopper 4.Because of this arrangement the end portion of the hood I which isremote from the hopper will be heated by the flame at the burner tip toa high temperature. Also some of the heat imparted by the flame to thehood will be distributed by conduction throughout the length of thehood, the intensity of the heat gradually diminishing as the end of thehood which is closer to the hopper 4 is approached.

In the operation of the apparatus illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 thestraight sippers are fed one at a time onto the upper flight of the beltI through the opening at the bottom of the hopper, and said sippers arecarried by saidbelt in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2.During such travel of the sippers with the belt I the sippers overhangthe hood 8 and the belt 5, as suggested at S in Fig. 2, the lowerportion of said sippers passing in close proximity to the top of thehood. As the sippers move longitudinally of the hood the heat thereofwill gradually soften the thermo-plastic material of which the sippersare formed at one point of each thereof, and as each sipper moves inproximity to the hottest portion of the hood Ill the weight of theoverhanging portion of the sipper will cause said overhanging sipperportion to sag downwardly until the outer portion of the overhangingsipper portion contacts with the belt as suggested at S in Figs. 2 and3. This sagging of the overhanging portions of the sippers occurs justprior to the passage of the sippers beyond the end of the hood, andafter such passage of the sippers beyond the end of the hood II] thesoftened material at the bends of the sippers will quickly cool and set.After the sippers have passed beyond the end of the hood I0 they arecarried by the belts I and 5 to the discharge 'end of the apparatus fromwhich they pass into a suitable receptacle (not shown).

I claim:

1. The method of producing a bent sipper which comprises causing asubstantially straight sipper formed of thermo-plastic material and aheat-- producing means to travel bodily one relative to the other,causing heat to be applied by said heatproducing means to said sipperonly at a predetermined point thereof intermediate of the ends of thesipper so that a relatively long section of the longitudinal length ofthe sipper at one side of the heated point thereof and a shorter sectionof the longitudinal length of the sipper at the opposite side of theheated point thereof are not directly heated by said heat-producingmeans, bending the sipper at the point of application of heat thereto bysaid heat-producing means, and allowing the sipper to cool and set atthe bend formed therein so that it will permanently retain its bentform.

2. The method of producing a bent sipper which comprises causing asubstantially straight sipper formed of thermo-plastic material totravel bodily relative to a heat-producing means, causing heat to beapplied by said heat-producing means to said sipper only at apredetermined point thereof intermediate of the ends of the sipper sothat a relatively long section of the longitudinal length of the sipperat one side of the heated point thereof and a shorter section of thelongitudinal length of the sipper at the opposite side of the heatedpoint thereof are not directly heated by said heat-producing means,bending the sipper at the point of application of heat thereto by saidheat-producing means, and allowing the sipper to cool and set at thebend formed therein so that it will permanently retain its bent form.

3. The method of producing a bent sipper which comprises causing asubstantially straight sipper formed of thermo-plastic material totravel bodily relative to a heat-producing means, causing heat to beapplied by said heat-producing means to said sipper, as said sippermoves relative to said heat-producing means, only at a predeterminedpoint thereof intermediate of the ends of the sipper so that arelatively long section of the longitudinal length of the sipper at oneside of the heated point thereof and a shorter section of thelongitudinal length of the sipper at the opposite side of the heatedpoint thereof are not directly heated by said heat-producing means,bending the sipper at the point of application of heat thereto by saidheat-producing means, and allowing the sipper to cool and set at bendformed therein so that it will permently retain its bent form.

4. The method of producing bent sippers which comprises supporting aplurality of substantially straight sippers formed of thermo-plasticmaterial for traveling movement relative to a heatproducing means,causing heat to be applied by said heat-producing means successively tosaid plurality of sippers, as said sippers move relative to saidheat-producing means, only at a predetermined point of each thereofintermediate of the ends of the sipper so that a relatively long sectionof the longitudinal length of the sipper at one side of the heated pointthereof and a shorter section of the longitudinal length of the sipperat the opposite side of the heated point thereof are not directly heatedby said heat-producing means, bending said sippers at the points ofapplication of heat thereto by said heat-producing means, and allowingthe sippers to cool and set at the bends formed therein so that theywill permanently retain their bent forms.

5. The method of producing bent sippers which comprises supporting aplurality of substantially straight sippers formed of thermo-plasticmaterial for traveling movement relative to a heatproducing means,causing heat of gradually increased intensity to be applied by saidheatproducing means successively to said plurality of sippers, as saidsippers move relative to said heatproducing means, only at apredetermined point of each thereof intermediate of the ends of thesipper so that a relatively long section of the longitudinal length ofthe sipper at one side of the heated point thereof and a shorter sectionof the longitudinal length of the sipper at the opposite side of theheated point thereof are not directly heated by said heat-producingmeans,

6. The method of producing a bent sipper which comprises causing asubstantially straight sipper formed of thermo-plastic material and aheatproducing means to travel bodily one relative to the other, causingheat to be applied by said heat-producing means to said sipper only at apredetermined point thereof intermediate of the ends of the sipper sothat sections of the sipper at opposite sides of the heated pointthereof are not directly heated by said heat-producing means, bendingthe sipper at the point of application of heat thereto by saidheat-producing means, and allowing the sipper to cool and set at thebend formed therein so that it will perbending said sippers at thepoints of application 15 manently retain its bent form.

of heat thereto by said heat-producing means, and allowing the sippersto cool and set at the bends formed therein so that they willpermanently retain their bent forms.

FRANCIS C. HAMILTON.

